Latch-in relay devices



Oct. 8, 1963 J. E. MARLEY 3,106,625

LATCH-IN RELAY DEVICES Filed Feb. 21, 1961 ,Fig.

2 Sheets-Sheet l Oct. 8, 1963 J. E. MARLEY LATCH-IN RELAY DEVICES 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 21, 1961 United States Patent Ofiice 3,165,625 Patented Oct. 8, 1963 vania Filed Feb. 21, 1961, Ser. No. 99,879 3 Claims. (Cl. 200--98) to electromagnetic relays and latch-in or memory type.

In accordance with the invention, the armature of the pull-in coil of the relay has a tongue which extends through a reciprocable contact-actuating slide and into the path of a latching armature. Upon momentary energization of the pull-in coil, the tongue of its armature pushes the contact-actuating slide to one of its circuitcontrolling positions where it is held by latching engagement of the tongue by the latching armature. Upon subsequent energization of its release coil, the latching armature moves out of engagement with the tongue so to permit the other armature and the contact-actuating slide coupled to it by the tongue to return to their original positions.

Further in accordance with the invention, one end portion of the slide is received by guide structure formed in part by magnetic field structure of the pull-in coil, in part by bracket structure of the relay contact assembly, and in part by bracket structure for mounting of a latch-in unit comprising the latching armature, the release coil and the associated magnetic field structure.

The invention further resides in relays having features of construction, combination and arrangement hereinafter described and claimed.

For a more detailed understanding of the invention, reference is made in the following description of a preferred embodiment thereof to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of a plug-in type of latch-in relay with part of the relay housing broken away;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view, on enlarged ing sub-assemblies of the relay of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a schematic of the circuit of the relay of FIG. 1 and its external control circuit;

FIG. 4 is a top plan view of a connection block the plugin relay of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a side elevational view of FIG. 1, partly in section on line 55;

FIG. 6 is an end elevational view of FIG. 5, partly in section on line -6 of FIG. 4; and

FIG. 7 is a perspective view, on enlarged scale, of terminal structure of FIGS. 4 to 6.

Referring to FIG. 1, the plug-in relay llll comprises a sub-assembly 11 attached to the upstanding leg of an L-shaped bracket 12 whose bottom leg is fastened, as by screws to the base member 13. A second sub-assembly M is attached to brackets 15 extending upwardly from and forming part of sub-assembly 11. These two assemblies ill and 14 shown in FIG. 2 and later herein described in detail, are within a protective housing 9 removably fastened to base 13 by screws 16. The housing 9 is preferably of transparent plastic to permit inspection of the components and operation of the relay. The pin terminals 17 extending downwardly from base 13 are receivable by sleeve terminals of a connection block 18 shown in FIGS. 4 to 6 and the spring fingers 15 extending below the free ends of the terminal pins insure that the relay unit It must be properly oriented as plugged into the connection block.

The lower sub-assembly ll of the relay (FIGS. 1 and 2) comprises a U-shaped frame member 2d whose base This invention relates particularly those of the scale, showfor may be fastened, as by rivets, to the base bracket 12. The pull-in coil 21 or" the relay is on a core member 22. fastened at one end to the base of the frame member 20 and with it forming an E-shaped magnetic field structure. The upper leg of the field member 20 is forked with the two outer tines 23 in a common plane and with the intermediate tine 24 in a plane parallel thereto. 7

The under face of the outer tines 23 and the upper face of the middle tine 24 respectively engage the upper and lower faces of a contact-actuating slide member 25. The edges of the right-hand end portion of slide 25 are received by guide slots or grooves, each formed by one of the tines 23 and by the narrower tine 26 of the forked upper leg of the inverted L-plate 27. The slide 25 is cut from a thin sheet of laminated phenolic or other rigid insulating material.

The rivets 28, or equivalent, which fasten each bracket is to the corresponding tine 23 of frame member 29 also clamp the intervening tine of plate 27. The lower end of plate 27, which is of brass or other non-magnetic material, engages or is fastened to a bracket 29 fastened as by screws 3t} to the underface of the lower leg of frame member 2th The bracket 29 has an opening through which extends the bottom tongue 33 of armature 34. The armature is thus pivotally mounted with its lower end in engagement with or in close proximity to the pole end of the lower leg of field member Zil, a leaf spring 35 being interposed between the plate 27 and the lowerend of the armature 34 to insure said engagement or proximity.

The contact assembly block 4% is fastened against the outer face of plate 27 by a screw or bolt 41 which exs through the block and thence through plate 27 into threaded engagement with plate 29. Each of the one or more sets of contacts mounted on block 40 includes a long spring contact 42 whose free upper end extends through a slot in the outer or free end portion of slide 25. These leaf springs bias the armature 34 to its unattracted position (FIG. 1), and each may serve as the movable contact of a pair of normally-closed contacts, a pair of normally-open contacts or of the combination of normally-open and normally-closed contacts depending upon the connection to it and the associated shorter contact springs 43.

At its upper end, the armature 34 is provided with a tongue 36 which extends through the slide 25 for coupling purposes. When the armature 34 is in its unattracted position (FIG. 1), its tongue 36 serves as a stop preventing downward movement of armature 37 of the sub-assembly 14 which is now described in detail.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the sub-assembly 14 comprises a U-shaped frame member whose downwardly extending legs 51 are fastened, as by screws 32, to the upstanding legs of brackets 15 of sub-assembly 11. The elongated holes or slots 32A of brackets 15 through which the clamping screws pass, permit adjustment of the relative position of the two sub-assemblies for purposes later described. The screw 52 which passes through the base of frame member Sil into the core 53 of coil 54 also clamps the upper leg of the L-shaped field member 55. The lower edge of the vertical leg of the field member 55 is recessed to provide a pair of tips which are received snoaeas Ii end of spring 56 is hooked onto the tongue 59 at the pivot end of armature 37. The tongue 59 freely extends through the slotted lower extension 69 of bracket 58, the bottom cross member of extension 69' serving as a stop for the armature 37 as attracted toward the pole tip of core 53.

The lug 61, extending upwardly from the stationary field member 55 and closely fitting slot 62 preventing rotational motion of frame 55, permits movement of frame 55 when screw 52 is loose. This movement enables accurate adjustment of the relationship of stop 65 and tongue 36. Additional adjustment of the relationship between tongue 36 and catch 63 is provided by loosening screws 32 and sliding sub-assembly 14 toward or away from sub-assembly 11, the bent-up ears 51A preventing rotational motion during this adjustment.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, when the armature 34 of sub-assembly 11 is in its unattracted position, the upper end of its tongue 36 is in slidable engagement with the thick section of the latching piece 63. The tongue 36 of armature 34 thus serves as a stop preventing movement of armature 37 to its lowermost position. When the pullin coil 21 is energized, as by closure of switch 64, the armature 34 is moved to its attracted position. The tongue 36 of armature 34 moves the slide 25 to the right and so changes the circuit-controlling position of the movable contacts 42 with respect to the associated fixed contacts 43.

In moving to the right, the tongue 36 rides along the thick end portion of the latching member 63 which is preferably of Du Ponts Delrin acetal resin or other lowfriction, non-magnetic material. When the tip of tongue 36 passes beyond the thick end portion of member 63, the biased armature 37 swings down with the step 65 of latching member 63 positioned in back of the tongue 36 of armature 34.

Thus when coil 21 is deenergized by opening switch 64, the slide 25 is held in its right-hand contact-actuating position until, at some subsequent time, the release coil 54 is energized as by closure of switch 66. The energized release coil pulls up the armature 37 so that the step 65 of its latching member 63 clears the tongue 36 of armature 34. The slide 25 is thus free to move back to its original left-hand position under the biasing force of spring contacts 42 to change the circuit relations between contacts 42 and contacts 43. Because of the coupling between the slide and armature 34 by tongue 36, the armature 34 concurrently returns to its unattracted position.

When, as indicated in FIG. 3, an alternating-current source is used for energization of the coils 2.1 and 54, the pole faces of the cores 22 and 53 are slotted to receive a shading coil. As indicated in FIG. 3, three of the pin terminals 17 of the plug-in relay Ill provide means for connecting the coils 21 and 54 to the external control circuit comprising the switches 64, 66 and a suitable source of current. The other pin terminals 17 are connected to the various movable and fixed contacts 42, 43 for including them in the circuits to be controlled by relay 1% as plugged into its connection block 18.

Referring to FIGS. 4 to 6, the upper face of connection block has an off-center slot 67 for receiving spring fingers 19 of the relay unit ill] when properly oriented. So oriented, unit 10 may be further pushed toward the block with all of its pin terminals in alignment with the sleeve terminal holes 68 of the plug. With the plug-in unit fully inserted, the lower ends of spring fingers 19 of unit 16 snap out to the dotted-line position indicated in FIG. 5 to lock the plug-in relay unit in its operating position.

As best shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, each of the socket terminals 69 of block 18 is a triangular slotted sleeve which fits a similarly shaped bottom extension of the pin-receiving holes 63. This slotted sleeve is formed by slitting and bending one end of a metal strap 70. After the sleeve 6% is inserted into the lower triangular portion of a blockhole 68, the remainder of strap 70 is bent into U-shape to embrace a portion of the ledge 71 extending outwardly from a corresponding edge of block 13 intermediate its upper and lower faces. A screw 72 which extends through aligned holes 73, 74 in the upper and lower legs of the bent terminal strap and an aligned hole through the intervening ledge 71 and nut plate 76 holds the terminal strap in position and also serves to clamp against it a wire or connection lug disposed between the head of the screw and the upper leg of the strap.

The terminal strap 70 is preferably of springy metal such as springbrass so that the wings of the sleeve terminal 69 make yielding frictional contact with the corresponding mating pin terminal 17 of the relay unit 10. The upper ends of these wings and of the intervening side of the sleeve are bent outwardly to overlie the shoulders formed where the shape of hole 68 changes from circular to triangular. Downward movement of the contact sleeves 69 is thus prevented or minimized when the terminal pins 17 of relay unit 10 are pushed into the connection block 18.

Tie holes '75 in the block 1% are for bolts or screws attaching the block to a relay rack or panel. With the block so mounted permanent connections are made from the various terminal straps 70 to the control and controlled circuits of the plug-in relay unit 10.

The connection block and terminal construction herein described and illustrated is claimed in copending application Serial No. 101,280, filed April 6, 1961.

What is claimed is:

*1. A latch-in relay comprising a U-shaped magnetic field member, a first coil energizable to excite said field member, a non-magnetic frame member having one leg overlying one leg of said U-shaped field member and a second leg extending toward the other leg of said field member, a contact assembly attached to said second leg of the frame member and including at least one leafspring contact having a portion extending beyond said overlapping legs of said field and frame members, a reciprocable slide confined at one end by guiding means at least in part formed by said overlapping legs and at its other end apertured to receive the extending portion of said spring contact, a first armature pivoted at one end adjacent the free end of said other leg of the field member and having at its free end a tongue projecting through said slide, a second armature pivotally mounted adjacent said overlapping legs and having a stepped member normally in sliding engagement with said tongue but movable into locking engagement therewith upon movement of said first armature to its attracted position by excitation of said first field member, said locking engagement continuing after deenergization of said first coil to retain said slide in the corresponding contact-actuating position after deenergization of said first coil, and a second coil energizable to move said second armature with its stepped member out of locking engagement with said tongue for return of said first armature, said slide and said spring contact to their original positions.

2. A latch-in relay comprising a magnetic frame member having a base portion and a forked leg extending substantially perpendicular thereto, a non-magnetic frame member having a base portion and a forked leg extending substantially perpendicular thereto, said frame members having their forked legs in overlapping spaced relation to define a guide slot and having their base portions in substantially parallel spaced relation, bracket structure attached to the overlapping forked legs of said frame members, a contact-actuating slide member having an end portion slidably received by said guide slot, a first armature pivotally mounted between said spaced frame members and having a tongue extending through said slide member for coupling thereto, a second magnetic frame member supported from said bracket structure in spaced relation to said slide member, a second armature pivotally mounted with respect to said second magnetic frame member and having a stepped latching element normally slidably engaging said tongue, a first coil energizable to excite said first-named magnetic frame member for movement by said first armature of said slide member to a position in which it is held after deenergization of said coil by latching engagement of said stepped element of said second armature With said tongue of the first armature, and a second coil energizable to excite said second magnetic frame member for movement of said second armature to position effecting release of the latching engagement between its stepped element and the tongue of said first armature for return of said slide member to its original position.

3. A latch-in relay comprising a U-shaped magnetic field member, a first coil means energizable to excite said U-shaped fieldmernber, a spring-contact assembly mounted With said spring contacts in front of the open end of said U-shaped field member and having at least one spring contact Whose free end extends beyond one of the legs of said U-shaped field member, a reciprocable slide supported by and guided at one end by means including said one leg of said field member and apertured to receive said free end of said spring contact, a first armature disposed between said spring-contact assembly and said U-shaped field member with one end pivotally supported adjacent the end of the other leg of said U-shaped field member and having at its other end a tongue projecting through said slide intermediate said contact assembly and the end of said one leg of the U-shaped field member, a second armature pivotally mounted adjacent said guided end of said slide and extending therefrom with a stepped member normally in sliding engagement With said tongue of said first armature but movable into locking engagement therewith upon energization of said first coil means, and a second coil means energizable to move said second armature with its stepped member out of locking engagement With said tongue of the first armature for return of said first armature, said slide and said spring-contact to their original positions.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNETED STATES PATENTS 

3. A LATCH-IN RELAY COMPRISING A U-SHAPED NAGNETIC FIELD MEMBER, A FIRST COIL MEANS ENERGIZABLE TO EXCITE SAID U-SHAPED FIELD MEMBER, A SPRING-CONTACT ASSEMBLY MOUNTED WITH SAID SPRING CONTACTS IN FRONT OF THE OPEN END OF SAID U-SHAPED FIELD MEMBER AND HAVING AT LEAST ONE SPRING CONTACT WHOSE FREE END EXTENDS BEYOND ONE OF THE LEGS OF SAID U-SHAPED FIELD MEMBER, A RECIPROCABLE SLIDE SUPPORTED BY AND GUIDED AT ONE END BY MEANS INCLUDING SAID ONE LEG OF SAID FIELD MEMBER AND APERTURED TO RECEIVE SAID FREE END OF SAID SPRING CONTACT, A FIRST ARMATURE DISPOSED BETWEEN SAID SPRING-CONTACT ASSEMBLY AND SAID U-SHAPED FIELD MEMBER WITH ONE END PIVOTALLY SUPPORTED ADJACENT THE END OF THE OTHER LEG OF SAID U-SHAPED FIELD MEMBER AND HAVING AT ITS OTHER END A TONGUE PROJECTING THROUGH SAID SLIDE INTERMEDIATE SAID CONTACT ASSEMBLY AND THE END OF SAID ONE LEG OF THE U-SHAPED FIELD MEMBER A SECOND ARMATURE PIVOTALLY MOUNTED ADJACENT SAID GUIDED END OF SAID SLIDE AND EXTENDING THEREFROM WITH A STEPPED MEMBER NORMALLY IN SLIDING ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID TONGUE OF SAID FIRST ARMATURE BUT MOVABLE INTO LOCKING ENGAGEMENT THEREWITH UPON ENERGIZATION OF SAID FIRST COIL MEANS, AND A SECOND COIL MEANS ENERGIZABLE TO MOVE SAID SECOND ARMATURE WITH ITS STEPPED MEMBER OUT OF LOCKING ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID TONGUE OF SAID FIRST ARMATURE FOR RETURN OF SAID FIRST ARMATURE, SAID SLIDE AND SAID SPRING-CONTACT TO THEIR ORIGINAL POSITIONS. 